Article
Revitalizing Cleveland: A new approach to economic development incentives
Apr 04, 2025 · Authored by Jolena Presti
The City of Cleveland has undertaken a pivotal initiative to rejuvenate its neighborhoods and foster economic growth. This effort involves a comprehensive review of existing economic development incentive policies and the formulation of a new scoring framework for project assistance. The primary objective of this initiative is to recalibrate incentive policies to prioritize neighborhood revitalization and stimulate equitable economic growth. The development of an incentive scorecard in Cleveland is designed to enhance accountability and transparency within economic development processes.
By employing advanced analytical techniques and data-driven methodologies, the scorecard aims to systematically evaluate projects based on potential impact and defined factors to advance community goals. This strategic approach ensures that resources are allocated efficiently and effectively, maximizing the benefits of economic incentives for the city's long-term prosperity.
Assessment of existing conditions
To comprehensively understand the challenges faced by the development community and align with the city's strategic priorities, the project begins with a thorough assessment of existing conditions. This phase involves an in-depth review of current policies, procedures and primary incentives deployed across the city. Integral to this assessment is stakeholder engagement, which encompasses focus group sessions and one-on-one interviews with key stakeholders, including public sector officials and staff, real estate developers, community partners and other relevant entities. By leveraging advanced analytical techniques and data-driven methodologies, the team aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of existing frameworks and identify areas for improvement. This rigorous approach ensures that the assessment is both comprehensive and actionable, providing a solid foundation for informed decision-making.
Challenges identified through due diligence
The due diligence process revealed several critical challenges faced by the development community:
- Lack of large-scale reinvestment in neighborhoods: There was a significant deficiency in substantial reinvestment efforts across various neighborhoods, which impeded overall development and growth. This lack of investment has resulted in stagnation and underutilization of potential economic opportunities.
- Need to extend the downtown renaissance: Despite the renaissance experienced in downtown Cleveland, there is an urgent need to extend this revitalization to the surrounding neighborhoods. This extension is essential to ensure balanced and inclusive growth, thereby fostering a more equitable distribution of economic benefits.
- Development proposal intake and processing: The existing process for submitting and processing development proposals was identified as unclear and inefficient. This ambiguity has led to delays and questions regarding the policies and procedures for awarding incentives, thereby hindering the timely execution of development projects.
- Transparency and accountability: Concerns were raised about the transparency and accountability of the incentives process. Stakeholders expressed that the current system lacked clarity and openness, which adversely affected trust and confidence in the development initiatives. Enhancing transparency and accountability is crucial to building stakeholder trust and ensuring the integrity of the economic development process.
Developers have shared that it is powerful to see this clear direction from the city with the development of the scorecard. Now the city is showing what they want to see in projects and what is valued in projects. This helps developers to have clarity as early as project concept development.Kate Warren, City of Cleveland Special Assistant to the Chief of Integrated Development
Developing a new framework
Following the discovery process, Baker Tilly collaborated with the city project team to establish an updated project review process, develop an incentives scorecard, and prepare a project financial analysis model. These new tools are designed to enhance the city's processes, increase transparency regarding the city's priorities, and identify community benefits in projects.
Now, when the city hears from a developer about a project, the first step after an initial intake meeting is for the developer to complete an application. That application asks questions about the overall project, including questions that seek to understand community benefits that are inherent in the project. Based on that application, City staff then score the project, share the score with the Developer and begin a conversation about incentives based on the score. This increases transparency for the developer into how the city is viewing their project and begins to set the table for a future community benefits agreement.
The new incentives scorecard and review process offer several key benefits:
- Clarity for developers: The scorecard provides a clear, step-by-step guide for developers to review their projects and determine eligibility for incentives. This clarity helps developers understand the maximum incentives they can receive, reducing uncertainties and streamlining the negotiation process.
- Enhanced transparency: The scorecard has significantly increased transparency in the economic development process. The public now has a better understanding of why certain projects are awarded incentives and the community benefits that will result from these projects. This transparency has helped build trust between the city, developers and the community.
- Reduction of political influence: By screening out "bad projects" before they reach the formal review stage, the scorecard has reduced the political impact on the decision-making process. This ensures that only projects meeting the city's criteria and providing significant community benefits move forward.
- Promotion of development: The scorecard sets clear standards for the type of development the City of Cleveland seeks, which helps shape long-term growth. This approach ensures that development aligns with the city's goals of revitalization and equitable economic growth, rather than merely reacting to projects as they arise.
Kate Warren, Special Assistant to the Chief of Integrated Development, noted that city staff have already provided positive feedback on the scorecard. According to Warren, "the scorecard has been great for developers who have an early idea for a project and are interested to see what city incentives they might qualify for. They see that elements can be shared as a framework for what makes a project compelling outside of a financing gap alone."
Overall, the new incentives scorecard has positioned Cleveland to better manage its economic development initiatives, ensuring that projects contribute to the community's revitalization and equitable growth goals. Take a look at the City of Cleveland’s scorecard: https://makeitincleveland.org/grow-and-expand/community-benefit-scorecard
